The senior community of the parishes Cabeçudos and Lousado painted two murals in alluding to the local collective memory based in their memories and experiences. The work was developed under the «ARTE’ID» action, part of the There is Culture | Culture For All project, which took place between March and July 2021, and involved around 31 participants from the above parishes.
The ARTE’ID project aimed to create an effective opportunity for the seniors of Cabeçudos and Lousado to imprint their mark, through the intervening artistic experience, in which they were authors and protagonists of their work.
"We all have our artistic competences (...) it is up to us to create challenges, to create moments that enhance them", highlights Leonel Rocha, councillor for culture. "Rooting cultural and art-related habits (...) makes our county richer and richer", said the councillor, who at the inauguration of the murals, last 5 September, highlighted the "excellent work" done by more than 30 local artists. He also highlighted the work of A Casa ao Lado, which "has been a fundamental partner in the area of plastic arts", by promoting "moments and dynamics that help to create this community spirit".
With the intention of stimulating the feeling of presence in the older population, A Casa ao Lado’s fieldwork began with a previous collection of testimonies from the elderly. "We got to know a little about the lives of each of the participants, the main artists", says Joana Brito, representative of A Casa ao Lado and artistic coordinator of ARTE'ID, "they showed us a little of the heritage of the parish, the idea of union and family, of childhood games". Afterwards, the artistic team took "these small pieces (of history) and transformed them into graphic images", said the coordinator, which resulted in the artworks that can now be seen on the wall of the Casa de Cabeçudos and in the Housing Complex of Lousado.
“ID means identity", said Joana Brito, who justified that the focus on the senior population was because they are the people with “more experiences and stories to share”.
The presidents of the parish councils involved showed their satisfaction with the initiative, highlighting that the graphic representation of the memories of their community allowed the spaces covered to gain a new life.
"Initially, I was a little suspicious when I started to see the first paintings", joked Jorge Ferreira, president of the Lousado Parish Council. "Now I see that it is beautiful (...) it is an example to follow (...) I hope that it is the first of many activities", he said.
"Basically, they took artists that were already here in the parish", comments Armindo Mourão, president of the Union of Esmeriz and Cabeçudos Parishes, in a relaxed tone, while stressing the importance of this intervention, regarding the "beautification of the parish" and the celebration of the "community and collaborative feeling".
It should be noted that, under the scope of the ARTE'ID action, art workshops were also developed during the month of May, with the objective of providing the stimulation of the cognitive capacities of the participants and promoting behaviours related to well-being and continuous learning. Autonomy, inclusion and intervention were the main premises of the individual and collective work process carried out by A Casa ao Lado, which had the support of local institutions such as: Casa do Povo de Lousado, Associação de Moradores do Complexo Habitacional de Lousado, Centro Social e Cultural de Cabeçudos, Junta de Freguesia de Lousado and União de Freguesias de Esmeriz e Cabeçudos.
ARTE'ID is an action included in the project THERE IS CULTURE | CULTURE FOR ALL promoted by Vila Nova de Famalicão City Council and co-financed by NORTE 2020, through the European Social Fund (ESF).